Group 1: Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund Performance - Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund's Investor Class fund ARTQX returned 0.97%, Advisor Class fund APDQX posted a return of 0.98%, and Institutional Class fund APHQX returned 0.97% in Q3 2025, compared to a 6.18% return for the Russell Midcap Value Index [1] - The equity markets continued to rally in Q3 2025, driven by strong corporate earnings, rising AI capital expenditures, and expectations for economic support from US fiscal policy and lower interest rates [1] Group 2: ICON Public Limited Company Overview - ICON Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:ICLR) is the second-largest global contract research organization (CRO), providing outsourced clinical development services to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries [3] - The one-month return for ICON was 3.61%, while its shares lost 12.45% over the last 52 weeks, closing at $188.67 per share on January 2, 2026, with a market capitalization of $14.673 billion [2] Group 3: Market Conditions and Outlook for ICON - The life sciences, pharma, and biotech sectors have faced weakness over the past year, but positive earnings reports from ICON and other CROs suggest that biopharma demand may be bottoming [3] - The biopharma funding environment has been challenging due to higher interest rates and macroeconomic uncertainty, leading to cautious decision-making among pharma and biotech companies [3] - The current market conditions present an opportunity to build a position in ICON, which is expected to generate mid- to high-single-digit revenue growth in a normalized environment and gain market share in a fragmented industry [3] - ICON is trading at just 13X forward earnings, near its cheapest levels since the 2008–2009 global financial crisis, making the risk/reward profile attractive [3]

Core Insights - Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund's third-quarter 2025 performance was below the Russell Midcap Value Index, with returns of 0.97% for Investor Class and 0.98% for Advisor Class, compared to 6.18% for the index [1] Fund Performance - The fund's Investor Class returned 0.97%, Advisor Class returned 0.98%, and Institutional Class returned 0.97% in Q3 2025 [1] - The Russell Midcap Value Index achieved a return of 6.18% during the same period [1] Market Context - Equity markets rallied in Q3 2025, driven by strong corporate earnings, rising AI capital expenditures, and expectations of economic support from US fiscal policy and lower interest rates [1] Company Focus: Polaris Inc. - Polaris Inc. (NYSE: PII) is highlighted as a top contributor, with a one-month return of -0.28% and a 52-week gain of 13.91% [2] - As of January 2, 2026, Polaris Inc. shares closed at $66.48, with a market capitalization of $3.739 billion [2] Operational Challenges and Strategies - Polaris faced a weak retail environment and high dealer inventories, leading to margin pressures due to increased promotional activities and financing assistance [3] - The company is addressing tariff impacts by reducing sourcing from China and increasing sourcing from Mexico and other countries with lower trade barriers [3] - Historical management has shown operational discipline by divesting less profitable businesses and focusing on core powersports operations [3] - Despite a challenging retail backdrop, Polaris remains well financed, with strong returns on tangible capital typically in the mid-to-high teens [3]

Core Viewpoint - Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund's performance in Q3 2025 was below the benchmark, with returns of approximately 0.97% compared to the Russell Midcap Value Index's 6.18% return, attributed to broader market conditions and specific sector challenges [1] Fund Performance - The Investor Class fund ARTQX returned 0.97%, Advisor Class fund APDQX returned 0.98%, and Institutional Class fund APHQX returned 0.97% in Q3 2025 [1] - The overall equity markets rallied, driven by strong corporate earnings, rising AI capital expenditures, and expectations of economic support from US fiscal policy and lower interest rates [1] Company Focus: Align Technology, Inc. - Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) experienced a one-month return of -1.05% and a 52-week loss of 28.71%, with a market capitalization of $11.31 billion as of January 2, 2026 [2] - The company is recognized for its Invisalign clear aligners and iTero intraoral scanners, but faced underperformance in Q3 due to high expectations and disappointing quarterly results [3] Sector Analysis - The health care sector was a significant source of underperformance for the fund, with Align Technology being one of the major detractors alongside Centene and Baxter International [3] - The health care sector has struggled due to policy uncertainty, leading to reduced investor interest [3] Investment Strategy - The fund initiated a position in Align Technology at $150 per share, following a market sell-off due to tariff concerns, viewing it as a high-quality business with long-term potential [3] - Despite recent challenges, the company is seen as a market leader in clear aligners, with expectations that it can continue to capture market share in the orthodontics space [3]

Group 1 - Tech stocks are experiencing significant selling pressure due to concerns over Oracle's debt issuance and general AI capital expenditures [1] - There is potential for bearish option trade ideas in the current market environment [1] Group 2 - A bear call spread is a vertical spread involving the sale of one call option and the purchase of another to mitigate risk [3][4] - This strategy is most effective when the stock price declines after the trade is initiated, but can also be profitable if the stock remains flat or rises slightly [6][7] - Bear call spreads are defined-risk trades suitable for retirement accounts, as they do not involve naked options [8] Group 3 - The Barchart Bear Call Spread Screener for December 15th highlights potential trades on stocks including META, MSFT, ORCL, NKE, CVX, and DELL [10] - The first example involves a Bear Call Spread on Meta Platforms, selling the $645 call and buying the $650 call, with a potential profit of 85.19% and a maximum risk of $270 [11][12] - The breakeven price for this trade is calculated at $647.30, based on the short call strike and premium received [11]

Core Viewpoint - Nvidia's dominance in the AI hardware market is being questioned due to a significant deal between OpenAI and AMD, but this may not accurately reflect Nvidia's position in the industry [1] Group 1: Nvidia's Market Position - Nvidia remains the largest provider of artificial intelligence computing hardware, with upcoming earnings reports from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) expected to provide insights into demand for AI computing hardware [2][5] - TSMC's performance is crucial as it manufactures chips for both Nvidia and AMD, but Nvidia's larger customer status suggests that strong TSMC results would likely indicate Nvidia's success as well [5] Group 2: Future Demand and Growth - AI capital expenditures are projected to increase significantly, with Nvidia estimating total AI data center capital expenditures to reach $600 billion this year, potentially rising to $3 trillion to $4 trillion by 2030 [8] - Despite rising competition from custom AI accelerator chips, Nvidia's GPUs remain the preferred choice for many AI developers, maintaining its leadership in the market [7] Group 3: Market Reactions and Stock Performance - Positive earnings from TSMC could lead to a favorable response in AI hardware-related stocks, making Nvidia an attractive investment opportunity before the earnings report on October 16 [3][6]